Single molecule techniques comprise a set of experimental methods that detect, manipulate, and analyze individual biomolecules or molecular complexes, circumventing ensemble averaging and revealing heterogeneity in structure, dynamics, and function. Core modalities include single-molecule fluorescence (e.g., smFRET, TIRF microscopy), optical and magnetic tweezers, atomic force microscopy, and nanopore-based sensing. These techniques enable direct measurement of forces, conformational changes, binding/unbinding events, and reaction pathways with nanometer spatial and millisecond (or better) temporal resolution. They are widely applied to study nucleic acid–protein interactions, molecular motors, enzyme kinetics, folding energy landscapes, and mechanotransduction at the level of individual molecules.
Researchers at Kanazawa University report in ACS Nano how high-speed atomic force microscopy can be used to study the biomolecular mechanisms underlying gene editing.
Bio & Medicine
Mar 14, 2023
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65
A study conducted by Anne-Sophie Duwez and Damien Sluysmans from the NANOCHEM group at the University of Liège (Belgium) has made it possible to decode the mechanical response of small-molecule synthetic overhand knots by ...
Nanomaterials
Jan 18, 2023
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100
Controlling the rotation of this molecule could lead to new technologies for microelectronics, quantum computing and more.
Nanophysics
Dec 21, 2022
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3837
A new way of extracting quantitative information from state-of-the-art single molecule experiments has been developed by physicists at the University of Bath. Using this quantitative information, the researchers will be able ...
Nanophysics
Dec 5, 2022
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305
Rutgers University scientists have developed an analytical toolkit to measure the binding forces of single proteins when they are pulled away from their substrate—such as an enzyme—that will help the development of new nanomaterials, ...
Bio & Medicine
Oct 13, 2022
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140
Researchers around the world are working to develop efficient materials to convert CO2 into usable chemical substances—work that is particularly pressing in view of global warming.
Nanophysics
Sep 14, 2022
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121
Changes known as epigenetic modifications play an important role in cancer development. Being able to analyze them quickly and reliably could contribute significantly to the further development of personalized therapy. A ...
Bio & Medicine
Aug 31, 2022
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131
As our devices get smaller and smaller, the use of molecules as the main components in electronic circuitry is becoming ever more critical. Over the past 10 years, researchers have been trying to use single molecules as conducting ...
Nanophysics
Jul 7, 2022
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127
Single-molecule electronic devices, which use single molecules or molecular monolayers as their conductive channels, offer a new strategy to resolve the miniaturization and functionalization bottlenecks encountered by traditional ...
Nanomaterials
Jun 2, 2022
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177
National University of Singapore physicists have shown that a single man-made molecular motor can exhibit a force similar to naturally occurring ones that power human muscles. Their results are published in Nanoscale.
Nanophysics
Apr 13, 2022
0
109
